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4[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/big_bad_beetleborgs.png]]
5[[caption-width-right:320:Just three typical, average kids.]]
6
7''Big Bad Beetleborgs'' was a live-action series produced by Creator/SabanEntertainment and aired on Creator/FoxKids (And later re-aired on Creator/{{UPN}} Kids from 1998 to 1999). It was called ''Big Bad Beetleborgs'' in the first season and changed to ''Beetleborgs Metallix'' in the second. A ''Franchise/PowerRangers''-like {{Sentai}} show, it incorporated footage from a Japanese show (in this case, the ''Series/MetalHeroes'' shows, ''Series/JuukouBFighter'' and ''Series/BFighterKabuto'') with new footage created in the United States. The show lasted from September 1996 to March 1998.
8
9Unlike ''Power Rangers'', this show made little attempt to be serious, being more light-hearted and comical (meaning that it makes even the early seasons of ''Power Rangers'' look like a Sam Peckinpah film). It also had a storyline completely different from its Japanese counterparts. It even aimed to a younger demographic, evidenced by the heroes [[KidAppealCharacter being 9-10 years old]].
10
11It was about three typical all-American kids: Drew [=McCormick=], his sister Jo, and their best friend Roland Williams, whose family owns the local comic shop, where they spend most of their time. On a dare from some bullies, they go inside the local "HauntedHouse." Once inside, they free Flabber, a wacky ghost with Elvis Presley's hair, Jay Leno's chin and Liberace's wardrobe filtered through [[WesternAnimation/YellowSubmarine a Blue Meanie]], who had been imprisoned in the mansion's pipe organ. Flabber cannot thank the kids enough, so he offers to grant a wish for them. The three young comic book fans know what they want, and that is to be able to transform into their favorite superheroes, ''The Big Bad Beetleborgs''. Flabber grants their wish, and the children are given the power to turn into the heroes, but now that the heroes exist in the real world, [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor the villains from the comic book likewise come to life]] [[NiceJobBreakingItHero to spread chaos]] (via the MonsterOfTheWeek).
12
13The three friends, with their new powers and a little help from Flabber, must stop them. This is complicated by the "House Monsters," comic relief monsters (Count Fangula, a vampire; Wolfgang, a werewolf; Mums, a mummy; Frankenbeans, a FrankensteinsMonster, and later Little Ghoul [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a... er, little ghoul]]), who often try to eat the kids, but generally have to settle for eating the screen-time and [[ChewingTheScenery the scenery.]]
14
15The second season had an exchange of villains and subsequently an exchange of costumes, with a new ally in the artist who created the comics and his evil brother working for the new bad guys. Slightly DarkerAndEdgier, but nothing too shocking. The show remained relatively popular, but like ''Power Rangers'' the source footage eventually ran out. Unlike ''Rangers'', there was no follow-up series to adapt (well, [[Series/BRoboKabutack technically there was]], but it was drastically different from the previous ''B-Fighter'' shows and was bizarrely even ''more'' kid-friendly than ''Beetleborgs'').
16
17As of June 2011, the entire series (along with ''Series/VRTroopers'' and ''Franchise/PowerRangers'') is available for streaming on Netflix.
18
19This comes with a [[{{Characters/Beetleborgs}} character sheet]].
20
21----
22!!This show features examples of:
23
24* AdaptationalVillainy: Queen Magna from episode 12 was originally an ally of the B-Fighters, Saint Papillia, in the source material.
25* AdaptedOut:
26** In the finale of ''B-Fighter'', previous heroes [[Series/TokusouRoboJanperson Janperson and Gun Gibson]] and the ''Series/BlueSwat'' team returned to aid the B-Fighters against Sorceress Jagul, who had revived their respective {{Big Bad}}s Bill Goldy and Mademoiselle Q, along with other monsters. The first phase of this battle was adapted into the episode ''Convention Dimension'', which featured Janperson, Gun Gibson, Bill Goldy and Mademoiselle Q as Karato, Silver Ray, Goldex and Wingar (respectively), but the Blue SWAT team were cut completely, likely due to their abundance of uncostumed Japanese actors in-scene.
27** "Borgslayer!" and "Vexor's Last Laugh" adapted the second phase of the battle (with Jagul in her upgraded form) into the battle with Borgslayer, which was consequently cut down to completely omit the involvement of the other heroes (Hyper Shou, Janperson and Super Blue Beet were the ones to mortally wound her and revert her to her original form) and villains (Bill Goldy appeared and dragged her to Hell with him after she lost her advanced form).
28* AdvertisingOnlyContinuity: A commercial which claimed that the bad guys and the borgs were aliens from another planet, when they were actually kids who wished to become the comic book heroes, the Beetleborgs.
29** Another ''Big Bad Beetleborgs'' commercial had generic mutants represent their enemies.
30* AllYourBaseAreBelongToUs: Subverted. Both groups of villains easily and frequently enter Hillhurst as if they own the place already, but it never seems to occur to them that they can destroy the place without any effort due to this. Shadowborg, however, ''does'' threaten to if the Beetleborgs don't face him.
31* AnimalThemedSuperbeing: The heroes are insect-themed.
32* {{Animorphism}}: In ''Metallix'' the kids gain the ability to turn into actual beetles via a spell from Flabber's Phasm Handbook.
33* ArtInitiatesLife: Monsters are created from comic books in the first season and Les' new drawings in the second. And, of course, most if not all upgrades to the Beetleborgs' gear are drawn by Art Fortunes, the creator of the comic.
34* BalanceBetweenGoodAndEvil:
35** Things from the comic book world seem to run on this. When Flabber gave the kids their powers, it brought the Magnavores into the real world, too; when they're defeated, the heroes have to give up their powers, because one cannot exist without the other. However, this also works ''against'' the Magnavores, as when they bring out villains from ''other'' comics, Flabber is able to counter it by bringing the corresponding heroes out as well. This also happens with the White Blaster Beetleborg and Shadowborg, as the former was created for the express purpose of defeating the latter and lost his powers when Shadowborg was beaten, and the Astralborgs, who were the Mantrons' balancing force. Flabber nearly name drops the trope when informing them the defeat of the Magnavores means they have to give up their powers, describing it as a 'yin and yang' thing.
36** Subverted with Nukus, who was simply a piece of concept artwork with no comic basis, and all the Crustaceans were random creations of Les Fortunes, as a result they have no heroes to directly counter them. Art creates the Metallix powers similarly (being just artwork without any given backstory), meaning this trope doesn't apply for season 2.
37* BayonetYa: Sonic Laser Sabers, [[BifurcatedWeapon which each split into]] a [[{{Handguns}} Sonic Laser]] and a [[CoolSword Pulsaber]].
38* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: Right there in the premise; three typical average kids wanted to turn into their favorite comic book superheroes -- which had the totally unintentional side effect of releasing the comic's bad guys, too.
39* BigBad:
40** Vexor in the first season, Nukus in the second.
41** The trope's name itself is averted with the [[NonindicativeName first season's title]], ''Big Bad Beetleborgs'' ([[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant "Bad" as in "cool", not "evil"]]). None of the Beetleborgs would ever qualify as the primary villain, [[spoiler:though Shadowborg is so far the only ''evil'' Beetleborg.]]
42* BigGood: Flabber is this in the overall series, as he is the one who supplies the Borgs with their powers and arsenal, while also supplying them with his occasional bouts of wisdom. Roboborg is this trope in the latter part of second season, since he is the most powerful being on the side of good, to the point that even the BigBad Nukus is afraid of him.
43* BrickJoke: In her debut, Jara mentions that she can't eat because her mouth doesn't move. Later on in the series a pizza guy mentions she 'tried to eat with her mouth closed.'
44* ByThePowerOfGreyskull: ''Beetle Blast!''
45** In case of Blue Stinger becoming Mega Blue, it's ''Mega Blast!''
46** Inverted with ''Back Blast!'', causing the Beetleborgs to revert to kids.
47** ''Bug out!'' transforms them into actual-sized beetles, also inverted with ''Bug back!''
48* CainAndAbel: The Fortunes brothers, Art and Les.
49* TheCameo: During the convetion episode, several characters make appearances, including ComicBook/SpiderMan and ComicBook/TheTick as actors in suits.
50* CampGay: Never overtly stated, but Flabber IS patterned partly on Liberace.
51* CareBearStare: In "Christmas Bells and Phasm's Spells", Flabber spreads some Holiday Cheer to make the Hillhurst Monsters exceptionally friendly. It only works during the Christmas season, however.
52* CelestialBureaucracy: The Beetleborgs version of vampirism is somewhere between this and a [[PonziScheme pyramid scheme]].
53* ChestBlaster: Lightning Borg
54* {{Cliffhanger}}: This trope is ''weaponized'' in universe with Cyber Serpent. He's from a two part issue and only part one has been released at the time he's summoned, so not only is he way stronger than the Beetleborgs can deal with at the time, they have no knowledge of his weakness to beat him with. They have to resort to a method their comics' selves don't have to defeat him: tricking him into stepping on the comic and opening a portal directly underneath him.
55* ComedicUnderwearExposure: In episode 2 ("Beetle Rock, part 2"), the very first time Drew uses his Stinger Blade, it's to slash Fangula's trousers and expose his boxer shorts, to the amusement of the three new Beetleborgs and Flabber.
56* ComicBookAdaptation: ''Series/PowerRangersTurbo vs. Beetleborgs Metallix'', published in the short-lived Saban Powerhouse magazine.
57* CompanyCrossReferences:
58** The head of [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers King Sphinx]] can be seen as a prop at Zoom Comics in many episodes.
59** In "The Ghost is Toast", ''WesternAnimation/CreepyCrawlers'', another Saban series to feature bug-themed heroes, is briefly seen on a TV.
60* CompressedAdaptation: Averted for season 1, which matches ''Juukou B-Fighter's'' count of 53 episodes precisely. Played straight, however, for season 2, which was given 35 episodes to ''B-Fighter Kabuto's'' 50.
61* CompetitiveBalance
62** JackOfAllStats: Drew
63** LightningBruiser: Roland
64** GlassCannon: Jo
65** MightyGlacier: Josh
66* CoolOldLady: Roland's grandmother, Nano.
67* CousinOliver: Parodied. Drew and Jo have a cousin named Oliver who they -- and the Magnavores -- find incredibly annoying.
68* ChristmasEpisode: "Christmas Bells and Phasm's Spells."
69* ChromaticArrangement: In the first season.
70* ContinuityCameo: Janperson ([[DubNameChange renamed]] "Karato") makes a cameo in "Convention Dimension" alongside his rival Gun Gibson (as "Silver Ray") and his nemesis Bill Goldy (as "Goldex"). Since ''Series/TokusouRoboJanperson'' was never adapted into an Americanized series, his cameo is treated as another fictional superhero who lives in his own universe, much like the Beetleborgs themselves.
71* CreativeClosingCredits: The credits to every episode are accompanied by sped-up footage of the monsters doing something silly -- typically running around or fighting in some sort of comedic fashion.
72* CreepyBasement: ''Metallix'' episode 4 ("Ghoul Trouble") reveals that Hillhurst's basement has this reputation -- Flabber is afraid to even say the ''word'' "basement", and the House Monsters are terrified of it too. The kids don't get why though (even after Flabber says it's the scariest place in the house), and newcomer Little Ghoul has no problem making her home down there.
73* {{Crossover}}: With ''Series/PowerRangersTurbo'' in Saban Powerhouse magazine.
74* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Don't push Wolfie too far. He was the only monster to try to help the Beetleborgs when they were getting thrashed by [[spoiler: Nukus. It didn't help much, but he was actually able to touch the guy, which the heroes couldn't]].
75* CurbStompBattle:
76** Several, but most striking was when [[spoiler: Nukus easily thrashed the Beetleborgs and destroyed their powers like it was nothing. Even after they get an upgrade, their first fight with him didn't go well.]]
77** [[FinalBoss Repgillian]] dishes one out to Roboborg and Boron individually.
78** The episode "Norman Nussbaum: Vampire Hunter" had one for the Beetleborgs and the Mansion monsters respectively. The Magnavores give a pretty brutal beatdown to the Beetleborgs outside that almost culminates in an execution before the Borgs catch their [[EleventhHourSuperpower second wind]] (which is honestly kinda disturbing given that they are children) while Norman uses his monster-hunting smarts to drive off the mansion denizens one by one in his hunt for Fang.
79* CuteBruiser: Jo. The youngest member of the trio, and the only girl, is the one with super-strength.
80* CutShort: The Beetleborgs never got to defeat the Crustaceans due to the show running out of ''B-Fighter Kabuto'' footage. Ironic, considering all three were killed off in the source footage (Dezzle/Vilor ''before'' the final battle with Jadow Mothera and Raija/Nukus and Miolra/Horribelle afterward).
81* DarkerAndEdgier: Though not by much, ''Metallix'' is a bit more serious compared to the first, since the villains are more competent and threatening, while the goofy comic book effects completely disappear from the battle scenes.
82* DaywalkingVampire: Count Fangula tends to wear sunglasses when he goes outside, and mentions that sunlight has a bad effect on his "complexion", but is otherwise all right. He appears to avoid long-term exposure to sunlight, but a few hours' worth do him no harm.
83* {{Deconstruction}}: The kids summon Roboborg to fight the Crustaceans in town...and something ''that'' big trying to move around a small town accidentally causes a lot of damage without intending to. The kids decide to keep summoning Roboborg in town as an 'in case of emergencies' thing from then on. [[Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers Zordon had a point about saving the giant robot only for when needed.]]
84* DecompositeCharacter:
85** In the original ''Juukou B-Fighter'', Sorceress Jagul has two forms. In ''Beetleborgs'', they're adapted into two separate characters, with her head being used for the monster Hypnomaniac (along with parts from two other monster costumes, all combined with a generic monster body) while her "Destruction God" form becomes Borgslayer.
86** In ''B-Fighter Kabuto'', the Gidorbas are giant worm-like tanks that can transform into and back from the Fly Gidorbas. In the U.S. version, they're treated as the separate Worm Tanks and Crustacean Jet Fighters.
87* DemotedToExtra:
88** The Scabs, the Magnavores' {{Mook}}s, are barely used compared to other Saban Toku series.
89** Jagul was one of the main antagonists in ''Juukou B-Fighter''. Her counterpart, Hypnomaniac, is reduced to a MonsterOfTheWeek.
90** Mother Melzard was the Big Bad of ''B-Fighter Kabuto'', but is reduced to three minor appearances in ''Beetleborgs Metallix'' -- once as the in-comic mother of a MonsterOfTheWeek (who is then summoned from the comic by Nukus) and twice as a Monster of the Week (once in her original form and once in her final form).
91* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: The theme song refers to the heroes as 'three typical average kids'.
92--> ''"Hey look, now they're superheroes, armed with super powers."''
93* EarlyBirdCameo: Wolfie doesn't arrive in Charterville until the sixth episode. Despite this, he is incorporated into the opening credits in a way that make it seem like he's at Hillhurst when the kids are initially exploring the place. He also appears during the closing credits of episodes 3 and 4.
94* EnergyWeapon: The Sonic Lasers in season 1 and the Data Lasers in season 2; both can fire a variety of different beams and effects (via a keypad on the side for the Sonic Lasers, and different Input Cards for the Data Lasers).
95* ExplodingCloset: In ''Metallix'' episode 4 ("Ghoul Trouble"), while the kids and monsters are searching the house for clues (which will ultimately lead them to new character Little Ghoul), Flabber opens a closet ''jam-packed'' with assorted junk. Flabber, TemptingFate, comments that "It's amazing! It defies the laws of gravity." Then all the junk promptly falls out on him.
96* EvilCounterpart: The Magnavores, the villains of the first season, spring into existence from the same comic book that the Beetleborg powers originated from, to serve as a counter-balance to the kids having the powers of the book's heroes, whereas the Shadowborg is a direct counterpart to the Beetleborgs.
97** Inverted with Josh/the White Beetleborg -- his powers were solely dependent on the existence of the Shadowborg, and faded shortly after the latter's destruction.
98** Les Fortunes is this to his brother -- whereas Art draws heroes who always win and defeat the bad guys, Les focuses on drawing monsters.
99** Boron serves as one to Roboborg -- they're both GiantMecha, but Boron was explicitly created to serve the villains and match Roboborg when the Crustaceans lost their chance at controlling him.
100* EvilIsNotAToy: Vexor raided the home of the creator of the Beetleborgs and himself, Art Fortune, looking for a new minion powerful enough to defeat them. He finds a drawing of an unknown character named Nukus, whom Art warns against bringing to life. Nukus was actually created by Art's brother Les, and is a much more sinister evil than Vexor, who Art created to be more harmless. Nukus proves to be the downfall of Vexor, and the BigBad of the next season.
101* ExpositoryThemeTune: Each rendition explains The Beetleborgs' situation in its respective season.
102* EyeBeams:
103** Nukus has them, and uses them to destroy any copies of his drawing to make it harder for him to be sent back to the two-dimensional world.
104** Roboborg has them too and uses them as one of his main weapons of attack.
105* FishPeople:
106** A MonsterOfTheWeek in the episode "Something Fishy" is one of these. Initially believed to be the local legend "Charterville Charlie", a creature described as half-man, half-tuna, it turns out to be Swamp Scumoid, the latest monster from the Beetleborgs comics. (Unlike most monsters in the series, Swamp Scumoid didn't come from the source footage of ''Series/JuukouBFighter''; its suit was later used for the gigantic title character of the movie ''Kraa The Sea Monster''.)
107** Vilor, one of the villains in ''Metallix'', appears to be a humanoid fish-like creature.
108* [[FirstInstallmentWeirdness First Episode Weirdness]]:
109** Van, one of the two rich kids who is later established as "the Jock", boasts of becoming captain of the Chess Club.
110** The Pipettes seem to be set up for a much more pivotal role. One of them is purple, although subsequent appearances would depict her as red.
111** Mums spends almost all his screen time unraveled to a MonsterOfTheWeek-esque skeleton monster, able to generate red bolts of electricity, which he, of course, never did again.
112** When he first gave them their powers, Flabber tells the kids they need to whistle to summon their Beetle Bonders. This never comes up again; going forward the kids always call out for them.
113** It's subtle, but for the first five episodes, Flabber's fingers do not have makeup painted on them.
114* FlashbackWithTheOtherDarrin: Once the character of Jo was recast, the first part of the opening sequence that shows the kids inside Hillhurst and initially becoming Beetleborgs was reshot with Brittany Konarzewski standing in for Shannon Chandler.
115* {{Foreshadowing}}: Josh arrives in town, and promptly woos Drew's crush, and is generally well liked by everyone except Drew; at the same time an evil counterpart to the Beetleborgs appears and beats them at every opportunity.
116* ForHalloweenIAmGoingAsMyself:
117** The Beetleborgs and Magnavores manage to walk around a comic convention freely because the Beetleborgs' creator Art Fortunes is a special guest and thus everyone assumes they're just cosplayers or hired actors.
118** Frankenbean does this on Halloween as well, with the Magnavores and the kids allowed to walk around freely with everyone thinking they're in costumes.
119* [[SixthRanger Fourth Beetleborg(s)]]: Josh Baldwin in season 1, Astral Borgs in season 2.
120* ForcedTransformation:
121** When Flabber grants the kids' wish to become Beetleborgs, he accidentally turns them into rats. Fortunately, he corrects his mistake immediately.
122** In "Cat-tastrophy", Drew gradually turns into a cat-like creature after getting exposed to the volatile monster Fire Cat.
123** In "It's a Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad World", Jo accidentally drinks an evil potion, which causes her to uncontrollably change back and forth between her normal self and a JekyllAndHyde-esque form. Ghoulem is later exposed to the same potion, which causes him to grow larger in size and change in appearance.
124** In "Jo's Strange Change", a miscast spell from Wolfie alters Jo's physical appearance, causing her to look like a completely different person. As Flabber is unable to counter the spell, Jo's altered appearance ends up being ''permanent''. Flabber eventually manages to cast a spell that causes most people see Jo as she used to look, but it has no effect on anyone who happened to see the spell being cast -- including the viewers. The meta reason for this was due to the casting change of Jo's actress.
125* ForTheEvulz: The primary motivation of the villains is to simply be evil. After all, they're kid grade comic book villains. This leads to such petty activities as stealing pirate books from the library so that the heroes will get bad grades in their classes, or stealing a train because seeing a model one makes them think it would be a good idea. They have a secondary motivation in trying to seal shut the portal to the comic book universe, but their 2-D counterparts aren't mentioned to have any such complex goals. While Nukus is more serious, he has the same motive of being evil, in his case likely due to being a piece of concept art rather than a fleshed out character with deep motivations.
126* {{Frankenslation}}: It was stitched together from two different ''Metal Heroes'' shows plus original footage.
127* FreakyFridayFlip: Season 1, episode 44, "The Good, The Bad, and the Scary." The Borgs switch bodies (and powers) with the Magnavores.
128* FurAgainstFang: Inverted; Wolfsbane and Fangula have been close friends for a long time.
129* FusionDance: The FinalBoss monsters of both seasons were created by fusing a bunch of different monsters into one, forming Borgslayer in season 1 and Repgillian in season 2. For extra power, the Crustaceans add a bucket full of toxic waste to the mix when making Repgillian.
130* GodzillaThreshold: Stealing Vexor's Energy Axis and using it to upgrade Drew into the Mega Blue Beetleborg is this, as it turns the risk of turning him evil, but Shadowborg has proven so impossible to beat that they have no other choice.
131* GoofyPrintUnderwear: A recurring theme, occurring more than once in the first episode. Count Fangula's underwear has little bats.
132* HalloweenEpisode: Two of them, actually: "Bye Bye, Frankie" (Season 1) and "Halloween Haunted House of Horrors" (Season 2).
133* HeadlessHorseman: In "Headless Over Heels", the Headless Horseman had an encounter with Wolfgang in the old country and allergies to him is what made him lose his head. When he arrives in Charterville looking for his head, he thought Wolfgang had it and tried to claim it back (or take the head of the other Hillhurst monsters). It turns out that Little Ghoul had his head which she used for bowling and ended up giving it back. Bolts were attached to the head to keep it from falling off again.
134* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler: Boron in the final episode, after the heroes steal the Astral Axe and gain control of him]].
135* HenshinHero: The kids transform into armored heroes through their beetle bonders.
136* HereWeGoAgain: Said word for word as the very last intelligible (minus some laughter from the other characters) line of the series -- Frankenbeans has had a headache all episode, which the monsters have been trying to help him with. It's ultimately revealed to be because Little Ghoul's doll somehow ended up inside his skull; once removed, his headache is cured. After dropping a wrench on his foot though, he says "Now toe hurts!", prompting Flabber to say "Here we go again!".
137* HeroicBSOD: Weird example with Fangula. He has continually tried to eat the protagonists, but they've also been on the same side on a few occasions. Then, Vlad the Impaler shows up to get him in trouble for not working enough evil in the community. Maybe, if not for vampiric regulations, he would have had a HeelFaceTurn long ago? Either way, he has an undeniable BSOD.
138* HitFlash: Of the ''Series/{{Batman|1966}}'' variety; {{justified|Trope}} in that the heroes are based on comic book characters. They were very prominent early in the first season, but gradually appeared less and less until completely disappearing in the second season.
139* HeadTurningBeauty:
140** Monsterella was created specifically to evoke this reaction in the monsters.
141** The Bride of Frankenbeans gets a similar reaction.
142** So does a date Wolfie gets through a computer dating service. The trope is used verbatim, although pronounced more like "Rerrooo Rurse".
143* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Had Vexor never brought him to life in the first place, Nukus never could have devised a plan that culminated in Vexor and the other Magnavores getting sent back into the two-dimensional world.
144* HumongousMecha: Gargantis is a non-humanoid example in the first season, as he is a giant Hercules beetle. Roboborg and his EvilCounterpart Boron are this in the second season, playing it more straight as they are humanoids.
145* HypocriticalHumor: Count Fangula hates fleas because they drink blood from unsuspecting victims. Apparently, only some parasites can pull that off.
146* ImpactSilhouette: In episode 2 ("Beetle Rock, part 2"), after the core trio use their new powers to fend off Fangula, Mums and Frankenbeans and then promise the trio that "If they'll leave us alone, we'll leave them alone", prompting the monsters to say it's a deal. The three then call for a retreat, turn around and run away, leaving their silhouettes in the wall they crashed through in the process.
147* InvisibleMainCharacter: In "Say the Magic Word", Roland casts a magic spell that renders Jo invisible. Much of the episode is spent trying to track down the spell book so that Roland can cast the counter-spell and restore Jo.
148* InvisibleParents: While Roland's parents and Nano show up regularly, we ''never'' get to see Drew and Jo's parents. On a lesser note, we never see the parents of Heather, Van and Trip, or Josh.
149* IsTheAnswerToThisQuestionYes: Early in episode 2 ("Metallix Rising") of the ''Metallix'' season, Bunny Bodel has hurt her leg after she tried to stop and interview a herd of prisoners ''as they were escaping Charterville Prison'', who ignored her request and ran over her on their way out. Bodel is initially unwilling to leave and get medical treatment, resulting in this exchange:
150-->'''Bunny''': Somebody's got to get this story out.
151-->'''Nano Wiliams''': Well [[MetaphorIsMyMiddleName "somebody" is my middle name.]]
152-->'''Bunny''': ''This'' is the story of the century. Do you think you think you can handle it?
153-->'''Nano Williams''': Does a bear have hair on his backside? Give me that microphone.
154-->''A resigned Bunny lets her have it and then limps off with Abby's help.''
155* JapaneseBeetleBrothers, rounded out by a ladybug.
156* JumpedAtTheCall: The heroes actually wished to become superheroes, which is part of what kicked off the ongoing plot.
157* {{Kid Appeal Character}}s: The three typical average kids themselves.
158* KnightOfCerebus: When Nukus shows up the threat level increases tenfold. Vexor was a rather forgettable villain in general, Nukus swiftly [[BatmanGambit manipulates the situation so that he had no challenger]]. Even still anyone who does fight him ends up on the bad end of a CurbStompBattle.
159* LaughablyEvil: Pretty much any evil thing the Hillhurst monsters do falls here.
160* LawfulStupid: Any law enforcement agency in the series, which is why three children wind up enforcing so much of the peace and order.
161* LawOfChromaticSuperiority: Averted; the blue Beetleborg is the leader and the one who gets a unique power-up mode, not red, who is instead [[TheSmurfettePrinciple the only girl on the team]]. And in season 2, there isn't even a red hero to begin with; the leader dresses in gold there.
162* {{Leitmotif}}: Each of the superpowers has an audio track to match.
163* LighterAndSofter:
164** Compared to Saban's other live-action works, such as ''Franchise/PowerRangers'' and ''Series/VRTroopers'', this series simply embraces its silliness and keeps a very lighthearted tone.
165** Very much so compared to its source material ''Series/JuukouBFighter''. Despite its occasional silliness, ''B-Fighter'' is a superhero show that plays itself straight and generally has high stakes. The villains are shown to injure and even kill. ''Beetleborgs'' is pretty much a comedy series with some superheroing thrown in. The worst thing the villains do in the first season is the occaisional vandalism and petty theft.
166* LosingYourHead: There is one episode in ''Metallix'' where Roland, Drew, and Jo attempt to remove their heads. In the end of "Headless Over Heels", the Hillhurst Monsters sneeze their heads off their bodies thanks to sneezing powder.
167* MadScientist: Dr. Frankenbeans is one, and ''proud'' of it. (Although, he may well be the OnlySaneMan among the characters with supernatural backgrounds.)
168* MakeWayForTheNewVillains: At the end of Season 1, Nukus is brought to life by Vexor, only to come up with a plan that that culminates in all of the Magnavors being sent back to the comics. With the Magnavores gone, Nukus goes on to form his own team, the Crustaceans.
169* MeaningfulName:
170** Creator of the Beetleborgs comic book, ''Art Fortunes'', and his less successful, jailbird brother ''Les Fortunes''.
171** Some of the villains have these. Examples are Horibelle and Vilor, whose names are obviously puns on the words horrible and vile, even in-universe after Nukus sees their drawings and describes them as such.
172* MidSeasonUpgrade: The Metallix armor in the second season. Technically not mid-season, but done for similar reasons.
173* MissingReflection: Used for a sight gag. Flabber hands Fangula a mirror, saying it will show what you see when you look up "obnoxious" in a dictionary. Fangula, of course, doesn't have a reflection, so [[DontExplaintheJoke the intended insult falls flat]].
174* MonsterMash: The House Monsters -- comedic versions of Dracula, the Wolf Man, Frankenstein's Monster, and The Mummy.
175* MonsterOfTheWeek: Vexor summons them from Beetleborgs comics, making him dependent on whatever monster appears in the current issue. Nukus has Les Fortunes draw his monsters for him, after which he summons the monster from the drawing.
176* MonsterRoommate: The heroes get their powers from a benign entity apparently confined to a house also populated by more hostile monsters.
177* MoreThanThreeDimensions: Flabber is mentioned as being from the 7th dimension. The plant he gives Roland in one episode is from the 4th dimension.
178* MundaneUtility: The kids often use their civilian powers to get tasks done faster and for mundane things, as well as to fight. Flabber often uses his RealityWarper powers for various things.
179* NeverSayDie: This show is even more lighthearted than its parent show ''Power Rangers'' in this regard, as monsters aren't destroyed, but "send back to the comics". Technically that ''is'' what happens and it is why Vexor wants to seal the portal but it is still kid-friendly.
180* NiceJobBreakingItHero: In "Christmas Bells and Phasm's Spells", the Beetleborgs manage to tie up Jara, Noxic and Typhus and are ready to send them back to the comics. Because it's Christmas, Jo decides to be nice, and convinces Drew and Roland to offer them some presents, ''which the Magnavores stole in the first place''. The Magnavores accept the presents, then teleport away. To be fair, had the Beetleborgs sent the trio back to the comics, it's possible that Vexor could've brought them back.
181* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: This show has a fair share of celebrity impressions. Notable examples are:
182** Flabber, who looks like a combination between Elvis Presley and Jay Leno, with the mannerisms of Jim Carrey.
183** One MonsterOfTheWeek disguises himself as the trainer Hurt-Ulese, whose Austrian accent and constantly quoting "I'll be back" is obviously based on Creator/ArnoldSchwarzenegger. Fun thing to note is that Arnold's first movie role was the titular Hercules in the film ''Film/HerculesInNewYork''.
184** Hillhurst was also visited by I. M. Fine, the writer of the horror book series Fright Files. He is obviously based on ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'' writer Creator/RLStine.
185* NoEnding: Like ''Series/VRTroopers'' before it, once the ''B-Fighter'' footage ran out, the show was over. ''Metallix'' ends with the heroes in charge of BOTH HumongousMecha and holding effectively all the power-ups and {{MacGuffin}}s they were fighting over. Les Fortunes also quits working with Nukus. But, most notably, Nukus and his gang are never actually defeated.
186* ObstructiveBureaucrat: Vlad the Impaler, who comes to have words with Fangula about his failing to meet his blood-sucking quota.
187* OhCrap: This is Flabber's response (technically an "Uh-oh...") when he realizes the Magnavores have just escaped the Beetleborgs comic the kids brought with them.
188* OurGhostsAreDifferent: There's a distinction made between Phasms and ghosts. Phasms are apparently extradimensional entities with RealityWarper powers, while ghosts are indeed the spirits of the dead who rise if their graves are disturbed and haunt places. Though both seem pretty dang powerful.
189* OurVampiresAreDifferent: Apparently, in this universe vampires don't need blood to survive, since Count Fangula can survive many months without consuming a drop of blood and only treats it as a delicacy. However, vampires seem to be required to suck blood as some sort of job. Failing to reach a certain quota will result in punishment. Also, vampires seem to be immune to the effects of daylight, as Fangula and Vlad are seen walking outside of Hillhurst with only sunglasses.
190* {{Parody}}: "The Ghost is Toast" is a very loose parody of ''{{Franchise/Ghostbusters}}''. Trip and Van hire a ghost exterminator named Dr. Buster Zapper to get rid of the supposed ghosts that are haunting Hillhurst. Dr. Zapper drives a car that is eerily similar to the Ecto-1, and is shown to have some sort of high tech contraption that can eliminate ghosts. Except the contraption doesn't actually work, and Dr. Zapper is ultimately terrified upon seeing that the monsters are real, revealing him to be a fraud.
191* ParentalBonus: In ''Metallix'' episode 4 ("Ghoul Trouble"), when Drew, Jo and Roland are searching the house's upstairs for clues as to the identity and whereabouts of the house's mysterious intruder (Little Ghoul, in her debut appearance). While in Fangula's room, Jo lifts up his coffin to reveal a "Fangboy" magazine, the title and cover marking it as an obvious pun on "[[PornStash Playboy]]".
192* PercussiveMaintenance: A rare use of this on a living (sort of) being -- the Metallix episode "Enter the Dragonborg" has Flabber get zapped by the Mantrons, which results in his usual energetic personality turning dull and listless, and his powers going on the fritz (and as a consequence, the main Beetleborgs can't borg). Little Ghoul later turns to this trope to solve the problem, restoring him to normal when she smacks his bottom with his Phasm Handbook.
193%%* PoweredArmor: The Beetleborg suits.
194* ProductPlacement: The entire "Convention Dimension" episode takes place at San Diego Comic Con, with the only other costumed characters seen coming from either other shows on Fox Kids (''WesternAnimation/TheTick'', ''WesternAnimation/XMenTheAnimatedSeries'') or shows dubbed by Saban (''Anime/SamuraiPizzaCats'').
195* ThePsychoRangers: The Mantrons. However, they are not this trope towards the main Beetleborgs, but rather towards their backup team; the Astral Borgs.
196* {{Pun}}s: Too many to list, especially when Flabber is on the screen.
197* PutOnABus:
198** Josh loses his powers, and says he'll be around if the team ever needs him again... ''And he was never seen again.''
199** Trip and Van leave during the Borgslayer fiasco to live on their dad's country estate, and aren't seen again. In this case, it's justified in-unverse: they'd had enough of the constant monster threats and were pulling a ScrewThisImOuttaHere.
200* ReachingThroughTheFourthWall: The main trio of child characters wish for their comic hero characters to become real-life. Unfortunately, this also realizes the villain characters as well.
201* ReadingIsCoolAesop: The cast did a few PSA segments dedicated to reading. One of them featured the Hillhurst monsters in {{Imagine Spot}}s as the heroes of the books they were reading. Another had the kids discuss how reading is an important part of being an actor (but what they like to read most is ''fan mail''). And another had the kids do a [[GratuitousRap rap song]] about how much fun reading is.
202* RedIsHeroic: Jo in season 1 wears a red armor. Downplayed in that, while she is definitely a hero, she is not the teamleader.
203* RunningGag: The kids get chased by the Hillhurst Monsters by running around in a circle.
204* ScienceFantasy: A magical ghost grants three kids high tech armor and weapons to fight monsters.
205* ScratchDamage: An unusual example if you think too hard about it. When Nukus appeared, the Beetleborgs stood no chance against him. Between their defeat and acquiring their Metallix powers, they learned a spell that let them turned into beetles, which they once used around Nukus. They had to distract him, so they bit his foot... making him yelp out in pain.
206* TheScully:
207** The monsters, in a certain episode of the first season, refuse to believe in the existence of the so-called "Charterville Charlie". This, despite the monsters consisting of a werewolf, a vampire, a mummy, a Frankenstein's monster, and whatever a "phasm" is, and living in a town regularly threatened by hybrid monsters from a comic book universe.
208** Jo says, "there's no such thing as the Boogerman"... to a vampire.
209* SelfDestructiveCharge: At the conclusion of the Shadowborg arc, [[spoiler:Vexor comes down to deal with the Beetleborgs himself. At first he blasts them away, but they steel their resolve and charge at him, straight through his lighting blasts. They manage to impale him with their weapons, causing him to explode. The borgs are fine. Unfortunately, so is Vexor.]]
210* ShesAManInJapan: A rare inversion. Jagul from ''Juukou B-Fighter'' is female. Her counterpart, Hypnomaniac, is male. Ditto for Borgslayer, presented as male; in Japan, he was Jagul's powered-up "Destruction God" form.
211* SmellySkunk: In "Svengali, By Golly", Vexor tasks the Magnavore trio with kidnapping Flabber. [[EpicFail They somehow grab one of these by mistake without realizing it]], resulting in all of them getting sprayed, Vexor included. Vexor is obviously not happy and flat out fires them.
212* SnakeOilSalesman: "Dr. Buster Zapper" in the first season claims to be a ghost hunter; in truth, he's a con artist.
213* SoLastSeason: The first fight of the Metallix season showcases this trope for the old Beetleborg suits, as Nukus easily wipes the floor with the kids, while nothing in the Borgs' arsenal is able to put as much as a scratch on him. To make matters worse, Nukus completely and utterly destroys their suits. For this reason, the Beetleborgs upgraded to the much more powerful Beetleborgs Metallix suits.
214* StupidEvil: The house monsters will take any opportunity to try to eat the kids, even when the kids have JUST saved them from some dire fate. Of course, the kids all have civilian powers, which mean they can more than take care of themselves.
215* SunnydaleSyndrome: The Magnavores run down the street in broad daylight, committing havoc and assaulting people, but nobody notices until they're being explicitly threatened. This isn't even counting the constant MonsterOfTheWeek battles, or the fact that the comic book superheroes everyone in town seems to love so much are constantly showing up to save the day.
216* SuperMode: Mega Blue, and later the Mega Spectra Beetleborgs.
217* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
218** At the convention, the kids try to get in [[ForHalloweenIAmGoingAsMyself as the Beetleborgs]] since Art Fortunes is a special guest. While it works, the staff gets suspicious at the presence of a second set of 'actors' running around.
219** Trying to remove a curse from the archaeologists that unearthed Mums results in Drew losing his powers but not losing his suit. Without his SuperStrength and the armor being powered, Drew can't move. A suit of PoweredArmor tends to be ''very'' heavy when it's not functioning, especially for a young kid.
220** Vexor gets fed up with the TerribleTrio being incompetent idiots and several times tries to create or recruit a far more competent replacement for them.
221** Josh's White Blaster Beetleborg powers are explicitly made to defeat Shadowborg... but as Shadowborg points out, he's also the ''least'' [[UnskilledButStrong experienced of the lot]], having literally only been one for a few minutes. As a result while he fairs better than the PowerTrio did and actually injures Shadowborg, he can't take him one on one and only manages to barely snatch the gems containing the other three's stolen powers by the skin of his teeth.
222** Les Fortunes' creations are all much stronger than the Magnavores...but he's also just one guy, he can only draw them so fast and this causes problems. They try to avert this by getting his comics published, but the Beetleborgs manage to foil that scheme.
223* SurroundedByIdiots: Vexor in regards to the Magnavores.
224* SwissArmyGun: Each Beetleborg in season 1 carried the Sonic Laser, a gun with a 10-key keypad that can fire different lasers and effects. In season 2, they carry the Data Lasers, which fires different ammo and effects depending on the Input Card inserted inside.
225* SwissCheeseSecurity: Justified. The mansion is an old house that's been abandoned for years. It’d be a miracle if the villains didn't get inside.
226* TerribleTrio: Noxic, Typhus, and Jara in season 1. The Crustaceans in season 2. The kids even namedrop the trope in reference to the former.
227* ThoseTwoGuys: Trip and Van, the rich bullies.
228* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Nano (tomboy) and Roland's mother, Abbie (girlie girl, respectively.
229* ToServeMan: The monsters often try to eat the kids but this is, played for laughs. If it wasn't for "Blood Light", Fangula would probably starve to death.
230* TotemPoleTrench: In "Bye, Bye Frankie", Trip and Van utilize this as part of their Halloween costume, complete with a UsefulNotes/RichardNixon mask. They tend to fall over quite a bit.
231* TransformationSequence: Shows drawings of their armor becoming three dimensional.
232* TransformationTrinket: The Beetle Bonders first, then the Data Bonders after the Metallix upgrade. For the latter, they'd need to insert different Input Cards. Both of the devices would also be used to summon their vehicles -- voice command in Season 1, and both via voice and Input Cards in Season 2.
233* TreasureHuntEpisode: "The Treasure of Hillhurst Mansion" involves a treasure hidden within Hillhurst, and multiple characters fighting over the map to it. The map leads to two chests, of which only one may be opened. The chest they pick contains slime, which only the monsters are interested in. Whether the other chest contained genuine treasure or not is never revealed.
234* TrueCompanions: The Monsters are constantly trying to eat the kids, and the kids will prank them in self defense, but when something threatens one group or the other, they will do their best to protect each other. They have a strange friendship.
235* VanHelsingHateCrime: A preteen VampireHunter who sets his sights on Count Fangula.
236* VampireVords: Fangula speaks with a strange combination of this and NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent.
237** When Van and Trip briefly become vampires in one episode, they start speaking the same way, possibly implying that a bad accent is a side effect of vampirism. Then again, they're children, and could just be playing the part as they've seen it.
238* VillainTeleportation: Every villain is capable of teleporting, normally with a unique effect.
239* WakeUpGoToSchoolSaveTheWorld: The kids still have to handle their civilian lives in between monster attacks.
240* WhatDoTheyFearEpisode: In "The Brain In the Attic", the monster Dicehead's brain (a glass sphere), if held by anyone besides him for too long, will bring their worst fears to life. Consequently, Jo has to face her Aunt May and her "slobbery kisses," while Count Fangula is confronted by his "nightmare" of an ex-wife. Drew's own worst fear turns out to be giant broccoli, which scares ''everyone''. In a partial subversion, they don't have to actually face their fears to beat Dicehead, just make sure they don't hold the brain for long enough to trigger the manifestation.
241* WholePlotReference: The episode "Buggin' Out" had Flabber conjure himself a transporter booth... And then a [[Film/TheFly1958 fly]] (actually the monster Kombat Knat) got in.
242* WhoWouldWantToWatchUs: In "Lights, Camera, Too Much Action", the movie director briefly ponders, making a movie about "kids who become superheroes and save the world." He then decides it's ridiculous.
243* WhoYouGonnaCall: In one episode, ThoseTwoGuys learn about Flabber, and enlist the help of a Ghostbuster-type mad scientist. Too bad his ghost disintegrator only works on ghosts, and not on Magnavores...
244* XtremeKoolLetterz: Metallix.

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